Barack Obama is gambling that Latino voters in Nevada’s big cities—Reno and Las Vegas—can deliver the state’s five electoral votes, Dan Hoyle writes in Salon. Economic woes, immigration crackdown, and the costly Iraq war are the draws in Reno, where Latinos make up 12% of voters. “I want Obama because the other ‘huey’ just seems like Bush refried,” a voter explains.
A voter-registration push has narrowed the gap between registered Democrats and Republicans, and California liberals are making weekend canvassing trips to overturn a state whose rural north “is so Republican it's silly,” according to one voter. But many Latinos remain apathetic, and business owners among them say they are concerned about Obama’s tax policies. (More Barack Obama stories.)